1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to storage containers and, more particularly, to a device for loading and unloading a storage container with respect to a transport vehicle capable of transporting the storage container, and an associated system and method.
2. Description of Related Art
Containers, particularly road-transportable shipping containers, are important commodities that are commonly used to ship and store cargo. In some instances, such shipping containers may be fixed in the form of a trailer having wheels disposed under the container and configured to be towed behind a tow vehicle, such as a tractor trailer. However, such trailers must often to backed up to a shipping dock, configured to compensate for the raised height of the container caused by the wheels, in order to permit convenient loading and unloading of the cargo. In instances where the cargo must be loaded and unloaded with respect to the ground, such a configuration may be inconvenient and/or result in additional labor, difficulty in handling of the cargo, and/or the need for additional equipment such as, for example, a forklift, to handle the cargo. Such trailer-type containers may also be difficult or inconvenient to store and/or ship due to the additional structure and handling requirements of the trailer components attached to the container.
One proposal has been to configure the container to be separable from the trailer. However, in order to load and unload the container with respect to the trailer, a crane with lifting cables attached to corner brackets typically found on shipping containers is often required. Accordingly, it may also be inconvenient and/or cost inefficient to provide a crane at each site where a container must be loaded and/or unloaded with respect to the trailer.
Another proposal has been, where the container is separable from the trailer, to provide a container handling device capable of being engaged with the container for loading and unloading the container, as well as transporting the container, independently of the trailer or transport vehicle. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,071,062 to Warhurst et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 6,155,770 to Warhurst disclose an apparatus configured to lift and lower a container, wherein the apparatus includes wheels at each corner such that the container can be rolled on the wheels and moved independently of the transport vehicle. However, such an apparatus, in some instances, may not be capable of negotiating certain terrain, may be cumbersome to transport and operate, or may even present a safety hazard when the container is supported thereby and raised above the ground.
Thus, there exists a need for an apparatus capable of loading and unloading a container with respect to a transport vehicle, wherein the apparatus is capable of deploying and retrieving the container with respect to a desired location on the ground or other surface. Such an apparatus should also be stable, should have a relatively simple and cost effective construction and operation, and should be readily transportable by the transport vehicle in addition to the container.